Category: telling product stories
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From Foyles to Anthropology: The “Lure” of Eccentric retailing
From Foyles to Anthropology: The “Lure” of Eccentric retailing Last week, in a further example of market consolidation, the UK’s leading book retailer Waterstones bought up the Foyles bookstore business. This included the famous Charing Cross Road store, recently moved and re-furbished. The stories surrounding Foyles are no less than retail folklore. They help to…
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Nudie Jeans: The Antidote to Mass Merchandising
If you want to experience something which is so far away from mass merchandising as it is possible to be then look at Nudie Jeans, and if possible, visit one of their stores. Nudie Jeans is a Swedish clothing brand originating in Gothenburg, founded in 2001 by Maria Erixon, a former employee and AD…
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John Lewis: The Revolutionary “Loved & Found”
Still my retail highlight of the year for many reasons was to see the opening of the new John Lewis at the Westfield London extension. But whilst the popular headlines latched onto the innovative and original idea to train the store personnel with actors so as to be able to engage and sell more successfully,…
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Are you truly a Retail Brand or just a Product Provider?
On the surface this may appear to be a question stimulated by the omnichannel evolution. In truth it has always been an important question however in previous times with a less demanding customer and a lower level of competition, being a retail brand was a less pressing consideration and the repercussions of not having a…
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Loaf at your Leisure: Disruptive Relaxation
Loaf, in a purely traditional definition, is a retailer of sofas, beds and furniture. However in the context of the traditional way of doing business it is a disruptor of the highest order bringing new ideas, imagination and inspiration to the table of home retailing. To begin, Loaf is not just a clever name…
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Converse Relationship: Clever Footwork to Customer Loyalty
Converse flagship store, New York City “Converse know who they are! A key to brand success is the commercial and emotional maximisation of the brand personality. Converse is the best example of taking an iconic product and bringing it to life through celebration of the classics, adaptation to new trends, celebrity, cultural and creative endorsement…
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“The Flow of Retail Passion!”
It is a very long way from the product drawing board to an exciting store full of inspiring stock and enthusiastic staff. The journey is complicated logistically, commercially, geographically and emotionally, and involves the passing of the product baton between many hands. First and foremost the outcome in terms of product proposition must be…
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Passion is an absolute pre-requisite for commercial retail success
Successful retail businesses are driven by passionate people,with sales & profits the commercial outcome of a passion for product and lifestyle. It would be unfair and inaccurate to say that retail businesses have been without passion as in fact some of the most famous and successful retailers ever, from the Limited Group to the…
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The Telling of Brand Stories: Untold opportunities from a ‘shop full of secrets!’
In a strange turn of events and in part reaction to the fabricated fantastic world around us there has become a clamor for brands with true heritage, roots, tradition and history. In many ways the greater the brand struggle, the deeper the hardship, the more humble the history then the more credible collateral a business…
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Pop-Up for Tea: Tasteful Treats from a world of Wedgwood
A mere meander from the horticultural highlights of the Chelsea flower show is a marriage made in heritage heaven between Wedgwood and John Lewis. Just a few steps into the foyer of Peter Jones in Sloane Square is a land of serene ceramics and tasteful elegance, a month-long pop-up experience that turns tasteful into…
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